The present invention relates to a data transmission system and an information management apparatus having a communication function adapted to the system.
This application is based on Japanese Patent Application No. 08-044,548, filed Mar. 1, 1996, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference.
Hitherto, portable information management apparatuses including electronic notebooks and handheld computers, have been known. The portable information management apparatuses are structured such that information of various categories each having different attributes, such as schedule data indicating the schedule of the user, address-book data consisting of a plurality of personal data including names and telephone numbers, are previously input so as to be displayed when required.
In recent years, transmission of data stored in an information management apparatus to another apparatus has been performed by using an existent communication system, for example, a wireless paging system. When data is transmitted from an information management apparatus to a pager receiver by using the wireless paging system, a loudspeaker unit provided for the information management apparatus is applied to the transmitter of a telephone set. In this state, a DTMF (Dual Tone Multiple-Frequency) signal corresponding to the call number (the pager number) of the pager receiver and data, which must be transmitted, is generated from the loudspeaker unit. As a result, a signal for calling the pager receiver and the message signal corresponding to above data are transmitted from a transmission station of the wireless paging system. Thus, data transmitted from the information management apparatus is received by the pager receiver.
If the pager receiver has the information management function as described above, that is, if the pager receiver is an information management apparatus provided with a paging signal receiving function, a function permitting data, such as schedule data and address-book data, to be transmitted and received is expected to make the pager receiver to be a further convenient apparatus as a communication means.
However, the message data, schedule data and address-book data which must be displayed have different attributes because of their different purposes. If data is transmitted or received regardless of the attribute of data, the user of the receiving device must determine the attribute of transmitted data to store the same in a corresponding region in a memory.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an information management apparatus capable of transmitting data of a type having an attribute regardless of the attribute.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an information management apparatus capable of causing data to be stored in a region of a memory corresponding to the attribute of received data without a necessity of performing a complicated operation if the received data has the attribute.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a data transmission system using the foregoing apparatuses.
According to the present invention, there is provided a communication system comprising:
a first information management apparatus having first storage means for classifying and storing a plurality of data items in accordance with an attribute of the data items, and transmission means for transmitting a signal including data items read from the storage means and an instruction code for specifying the attribute of the data items; and
second information management apparatus having second storage means structured similarly to the first storage means, receiving means for receiving a signal transmitted from the first information management apparatus, display means for displaying data included in the signal received by the receiving means together with the instruction code, instruction means for performing an instruction operation for storing the data displayed on the display means to a corresponding classification position in the second storage means in accordance with the instruction code received by the receiving means, and storage control means for storing data to the corresponding classification position in the second storage means in accordance with the instruction operation performed by the instruction means.
The above-mentioned communication system enables the receiver-side apparatus to store data transmitted from the transmission apparatus in a classified region on the storage means corresponding to the attribute of data with a simple instruction operation so as to share data.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information management apparatus comprising:
storage means for classifying and storing a plurality of data items in accordance with an attribute of the data items; and
transmission means for transmitting a signal including data items read from the storage means and an instruction code for specifying the attribute of the data items.
According to this information management apparatus, user of this information management apparatus is able to transmit data of a type having an attribute regardless of the attribute.
According to still further aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information management apparatus comprising:
storage means for classifying and storing a plurality of data items in accordance with an attribute of the data items;
selection means for selecting data item to be transmitted from the plurality of data items stored in the storage means; and
transmission means for reading data item selected by the selection means from the storage means and transmitting a signal including data item read from the storage means and an instruction code for specifying the attribute of read data.
According to still further aspect of the present invention, the transmission means converts, into a dial tone signal, the signal including data and the instruction code so as to sequentially transmit the signal.
According to still further aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information management apparatus comprising:
storage means for classifying and storing a plurality of data items in accordance with an attribute of the data items;
receiving means for receiving a signal including data and an instruction code for specifying the attribute of data;
display means for displaying data included in the signal received by the receiving means together with the instruction code;
instruction means for performing an instruction operation for storing the data displayed on the display means to a corresponding classification position in the storage means in accordance with the instruction code received by the receiving means; and
storage control means for storing data to the corresponding classification position in the storage means in accordance with the instruction operation performed by the instruction means.
According to this information management apparatus, received data can be stored in a classified region on the storage means corresponding to the attribute of data with a simple instruction operation for confirming received data.
According to still further aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information management apparatus comprising:
storage means for classifying and storing a plurality of data items in accordance with an attribute of the data items;
receiving means for receiving a signal including data and an instruction code for specifying the attribute of data;
display means for displaying data included in the signal received by the receiving means together with the instruction code;
instruction means for performing an instruction operation for storing the data displayed on the display means to a corresponding classification position in the storage means in accordance with the instruction code received by the receiving means;
storage control means for storing data to the corresponding classification position in the storage means in accordance with the instruction operation performed by the instruction means; and
transmission means for transmitting a signal including data read from said storage means and an instruction code for specifying the attribute of read data.
According to the still further aspect of the present invention, the transmission means converts, into a dial signal, the signal including data and the instruction code so as to sequentially transmit the signal.
Additional objects and advantages of the present invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the present invention.
The objects and advantages of the present invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.